Kadyrov’s Son’s wife beaten and accused of witchcraft, activists claim

Akhmat Kadyrov

The daughter-in-law of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has been divorced, beaten and hospitalised after being accused of practising witchcraft, a regional opposition group has claimed.

NIYSO, an activist movement opposing the Chechen regime, said Tamila Makhmatova – the wife of Mr Kadyrov’s eldest son, Akhmat – was targeted alongside several of her relatives.

The claims, which have not been independently verified, allege that Ms Makhmatova and her mother are currently in a serious condition in a hospital in the regional capital, Grozny.

According to the activists, the dispute began after Akhmat Kadyrov, now 20, began "behaving irrationally" and came to view his wife as his sole source of guidance.

The Kadyrov family reportedly accused Ms Makhmatova and her relatives of using witchcraft against him, triggering a violent backlash.

The movement claimed that Ms Makhmatova's father, Lema Makhmatov, a member of the Grozny City Council, was ordered to blame his family's injuries on a "tragic road accident" to cover up the assault.

"Initially, Mariam Makhmatova, her mother and, reportedly, even her grandmother were to be executed," the activists wrote in a statement, using an alternative name for Ms Makhmatova.

They added that the Chechen leader had initially "flown into a rage" but the executions were ultimately not carried out for reasons that remain unknown.

The group also alleged that a dental clinic owned by the family in Grozny was confiscated and transferred to individuals linked to the Chechen authorities.

Earlier this month, on 11 July, NIYSO reported that Akhmat Kadyrov had married for a second time during a closed-door ceremony in the family's ancestral village of Akhmat-Yurt.

His first marriage to Ms Makhmatova in March 2023 was also conducted under strict secrecy when he was 17 years old.

Accusations of witchcraft have frequently been used by authorities in the southern Russian republic to justify public humiliation and extrajudicial pressure.

Those accused of practising sorcery are regularly paraded on Chechen state television to deliver public confessions.

Human rights groups have long argued that these campaigns are used as a tool of state-sponsored intimidation, arbitrary detention and extortion.

In late 2024, Suleiman Eniev, a former medical centre director and former ally of Mr Kadyrov, reportedly disappeared after objects associated with witchcraft were allegedly found at his home. His whereabouts remain unknown.